Since by man.

SCREAMO--IT'S THE "NEW" THING, in case you haven't heard. Rolling Stone has been onto it since before the major labels wet themselves for Thursday to sign and even the venerable New York Times covered it a couple of weeks ago so, you know, your mom knows all about it (and she apparently approves)

While we pride ourselves on being contrarian (that means opposite) and above all (or at least some) of the hoopla surrounding new "punk" royalty, we've admittedly had a hard time ignoring Milwaukee upstarts Since By Man. The band--singer Sam Macon, guitarists Justin Kay and Kevin Herwig, bassist Eric Alonso, and drummer Jon Kraft--seem to be a little misplaced in time, despite the growing popularity of a lot of the At The Drive In rehash bands that they might get grouped with. Rather than aping the flavor of the day, they sound more like the best noisemakers from the late '80s and early '90s: Born Against, Chino Horde, Swing Kids, Native Nod. And coincidentally, singer Sam Macon looks oddly a lot like Kirk Cameron. Go figure.

But what really seems to separate Since By Man from the assortment of clones is that they are actually saying something, or at least trying to. "A lot of the bands that are getting really big and reaching people aren't saying a fucking thing," bemoans Mason. "I mean, for someone who got into punk rock because of what it's saying, these days are really frustrating" Join the club, Sam.

Of course, talking about your manifesto is far easier than actually putting one out there and having it be accepted by folks. While there is no shortage of important geo-political, economical and social issues to address, punk and hardcore--built on cheap drugs and socialist politics more than 25 years ago--is more willing to eschew bands they deem too preachy rather than embrace them. This political backlash has birthed a scene that is more about style than substance, an aesthetic easily tailor fit at Hot Topic and Pac Sun, says Mason. "I am not supporting keeping shit on lock down and keeping it elitist. But I am not satisfied with people just showing up for the three hours of a show and seeing a band like us and the second they walk out of the show, it has nothing else to do with any other part of their life."

For Since By Man, this means creating a delicate balance between art and social referendum The band's debut, We Sing the Body Electric, focuses heavily on well-tread Us vs. Them themes but Mason takes particular care not to be excessively literal in communicating the band's point of view. "We are not a Register and Vote type of a band. It's funny, we were listening to Mos Def's Black on Both Sides and Kevin, our guitar player, was like, 'Listening to this record makes me think that I can change the world.' If more people thought that way, then maybe we could. So Us are the people that think we can and Them are the people that think we can't," he says, adding that while all of the members are politically opinionated as individuals, they don't always agree.

While Body Electric intended to be largely agenda-free, its stand-out moments definitely echo a series of universal sentiments for the dissatisfied set. Tracks like "Parole en Liberta" and "A Kid Who Tells on Another Kid is a Dead Kid" provide a unified, albeit seemingly ambiguous, position that compels listeners toward actions: riot and rejoice, destroy and dance, bust shit up and booty shake. So, by alluding to politics, broadly-defined, of course, without drawing a tangible line in the sand, Mason and Since By Man can become a clear rally cry for change in some cases and simply a rump-shaking good time in others.

"As individuals, we are extremely opinionated and we can tell you all about whatever it is you want to talk about the second that you ask us. I suggest some ideas [within the music] and wait for kids to come up to me after the show and then I'll talk their ear off forever," says Mason. "But first and foremost, we want to write songs that make people want to crawl down to their basement and loose their fucking mind for an hour and 25 minutes."

And that's saying something.